Satya Nadella's Windows Phone Death Warrant Being Drafted In Redmond

I wanna preface this by saying first and foremost I am an avid supporter of the Microsoft ecosystem (Icon, SP2, Xbox 360) and that I say this with much sadness.

Cortana going to iOS and Android is an unofficial surrender by MSFT in the smartphone OS market and what seems to be a subtle axing of Windows Phone by Nadella. Microsoft's only hope of ever establishing a credible 3rd place foothold in the industry will be shattered with a digital assistant that Microsoft bragged would be more intuitive and advanced than Siri and Google Now, Albeit it isn't at the moment but Redmond have the resources and know-how to eventually make it true. Deep down I doubt Nadella and MSFT's overall faith in WP. I wouldn't be shocked if I saw Nadella pull an iPhone out of his pocket.

I don't even know why Nadella bragged about Microsoft becoming a "cloud first device and services company" why not just leave the "devices" portion out and be honest? MSFT loves to flip-flop on the device products they initially bragged so much about. See the Xbox One's Kinect for example: they bragged profusely that it was better to have the Kinect add-on and even required it to play games on the XBone; they changed that. They required Kinect to come with every console; they changed that. Now we're seeing the same with Windows Phone and to some degree Windows 8 and the Surface. I wonder how involved Nadella was with the Nokia acquisition, it probably was set into motion by the board before Ballmer stepped down.

MSFT made a touch friendly Office for iPad a priority over a touch friendly Office for Surface and other W8 tablets, despite knowing for a long time in advance that they themselves would be rolling out a touch tablet of their own. The Office division clearly weren't told about the Microsoft Surface before any of us consumers were apparently.
They brought Bing Rewards to iOS & Android months before WP got it. All at the same time that Google was giving MSFT the bird when they requested Google Apps on WP8.

Now they plan on giving away one of the best and most recognizable product differentiators Windows Phone had going for them, it would be like Ford coming up with an amazing car technology and giving it FREE to GM and Chrysler so people wouldn't have to buy the Ford in the first place. Why should any iPhone or Android user leave their superior app ecosystems for Windows Phone if every cool WP feature gets ported over to iOS and Android? Plus I add, why does Apple even need Cortana, when they've committed to using Bing for Siri and OSX already? Millions of iPhones are already using Bing search, and the new Apple deal will continue to help grow Bing's market share in mobile searches.

MSFT is blowing the best tool they had for growing WP's market share in the US and in other markets where growth was abysmal. Millions & millions of PC's run Windows and business and schools around the world generally prefer Windows PC's. Why not develop Cortana's tech and migrate Cortana to Xbox One and Windows 8 tablets/PCs?? Hell even Cortana on Windows 7 and Xbox 360 makes sense. It would introduce and familiarize millions of more people to the digital assistant and if MSFT made it good enough, it would attract more mainstream users to WP. Imagine a commercial showing a person talking to Cortana on Windows Phone telling her to download a game so it's ready when I get home (it then flashes over to the person's Xbox One in the living room). Or an Xbox One commercial where someone tells Cortana while playing Xbox "Cortana Print my excel spreadsheet at the office so it's ready when I get there" (then flashes over to an office where a Windows 8 PC with Cortana performs this task remotely). Heck or imagine someone a MSFT commercial where a guy is watching a friend's Xbox Live match from his Windows Phone or Surface tablet and receives an XBL party invite on his phone to come play when he gets home. This merger of mobile and home, entertainment and work to me is the true ONE MICROSOFT not this "oh we need to learn to share with the other brands BS" That's not how free market competition works, you establish your brand by striving to be better and unique from the competition as to attract consumers to your product over your competitors.

Google and Apple don't have a comparable infrastructure to compete with MSFT on this strategy. There's many more Xbox Ones and 360's in people's homes than there are Apple TV and Chromecasts. There's also like 1000 windows PCs for every Mac and Chromebook in the professional enterprise environment. MSFT has all the leverage here and they're ******* it away. Cortana could have became the most advanced and personal DI useful for both work and play and could have been the highlight of MSFT advertising. If you want the awesome and unique MSFT experience then you need to buy MSFT products! That's Business Marketing 101. Jesus Christ Microsoft! What's next Halo 5 on PS4 with extra levels and DLC that the XBone won't get? Nadella's MSFT probably likes that idea too.

Satya is no stupid. He knows that WP is part of their strategy and they'll always have Windows since it's their core tradition. But I think we'll see MS expand to other platforms for services. But if you want the best experience then a Windows based device is the best way to go

Cortana is already ahead of the competition even though it is only in beta. There had been official decision on whether Cortana would be brought to competing platforms, and if it is it will just be in the form of an app and not built in.

Well he did in some 20 minute YouTube interview at Microsoft HQ when he was introduced as the new CEO. Regardless it's clear he's not a fan of MSFT's physical devices.

Originally Posted by 12Danny123

Satya is no stupid. He knows that WP is part of their strategy and they'll always have Windows since it's their core tradition. But I think we'll see MS expand to other platforms for services. But if you want the best experience then a Windows based device is the best way to go

Well I'm very sure he'll leave the Surface Line up since It's pretty popular in business where I live

Cortana is already ahead of the competition even though it is only in beta. There had been official decision on whether Cortana would be brought to competing platforms, and if it is it will just be in the form of an app and not built in.

Well according to some tech reviewers Daniel Rubino included, it still lags behind Google Now in many areas. And I'm inclined to agree, but as you said that's b/c it's still in Beta form.

If Xbox would have 2% of market share then Halo would be launched first in PS4 without any doubt.

How to you think the original Xbox established itself in the Nintendo and Sony dominated console duopoly at the time? It did have a minuscule portion of console market to start and it only made it because of the quality exclusives that Microsoft Games Studio pumped out.

True, but point is Cortana is an incentive nonetheless, an incentive MSFT is pondering on throwing away.

But I really don't think it's that much of an incentive. For example, Microsoft could screw Sony by not licensing DirectX to them for the playstation, but they do. Even when they're behind, Microsoft still licenses DirectX 11. To me, Cortana is like DirectX: Its cool for fans to brag about, but its not necessarily going to make people switch platforms.

Now don't get me wrong, I WANT them to keep it exclusive, but I'm also not oblivious to why they would want to give Cortana to other platforms after they make ours kick @$$

But I really don't think it's that much of an incentive. For example, Microsoft could screw Sony by not licensing DirectX to them for the playstation, but they do. Even when they're behind, Microsoft still licenses DirectX 11. To me, Cortana is like DirectX: Its cool for fans to brag about, but its not necessarily going to make people switch platforms.

Now don't get me wrong, I WANT them to keep it exclusive, but I'm also not oblivious to why they would want to give Cortana to other platforms after they make ours kick @$$

I know Cortana alone is not that big of an incentive but it was one that could be added up with other things that cumulatively gave WP some uniqueness from Android and iOS. There's a reason Apple hasn't and won't port over Siri and iMessage to Windows Phone or Android, it would only serve to undermine their own product.

On what grounds? You don't like the idea that MSFT may potentially be inadvertently killing off one of their babies? If you don't like this perspective then leave the thread. You're not forced to be here.

I would like to think Microsoft is smart enough to not kill off windows phone. Seeing how they recently bought part of Nokia. Let the people at Microsoft decide what they do with their software. They have jobs there for a reason. It is a business, they try to make the most money they can. And if putting an app or software, personal assistant whatever on another platform does that. Then they are doing good as a business. Which is fantastic in my opinion.